Joo Jin-woo, a preliminary candidate for Busan mayor from the People Power Party (PPP), stressed that "Busan must change the growth navigation that Mayor Park Heong-jun designed six years ago if the city is to take off again." He said bold leadership from a young leader "is needed more than ever" to tackle pressing challenges such as the integration of Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province and attracting cutting-edge industries including artificial intelligence.
In an interview with the Seoul Economic Daily at a building in Yeonje-gu, Busan on Wednesday, Joo said, "New issues such as the Northern Sea Route and regional integration keep emerging, but Busan is still a city that young people are leaving." He added, "Nothing has changed over the past six years. It is time to reset the navigation that was programmed six years ago."
Unlike Mayor Park, his rival in the same party's primary who emphasizes stability and policy continuity, Joo is positioning speed and execution as his strengths. He stressed that speed is the key for the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam integration, especially as South Jeolla-Gwangju and North Gyeongsang-Daegu are racing ahead with their own regional mergers.
"Busan's annual budget is about 16 trillion won ($11.7 billion), but after fixed costs there is not much funding actually available," he said. "If we secure a fiscal base of at least 20 trillion won through integration, we can dramatically transform Busan." He continued, "To attract cutting-edge industries such as AI, we ultimately need to ease regulations and prepare support measures. If the integrated Jeonnam-Gwangju city moves to deregulate and provide fiscal support, it could poach the companies that Busan should be attracting."
Responding to criticism that rapid integration is unrealistic, he pushed back, saying, "Politics is ultimately a process of turning things into issues. When the public gets angry or sympathizes, the direction gradually shifts." He added, "Rather than just saying it is impossible, we need to frame the issue and bring it to public attention so that opposing forces face judgment at the ballot box. That is how change happens."
Joo also highlighted his differences with Jeon Jae-su, a National Assembly member considered a strong ruling-party candidate. "If lawmaker Jeon is someone who creates 'gentle ripples,' I am the person who will bring 'waves' to Busan," he said. He criticized Jeon, saying, "The HMM relocation was originally a pledge by President Lee Jae-myung, and lawmaker Jeon merely accepted what the government handed him."
He went on, "Instead of being satisfied with that, he could have drawn a bigger picture — joint investment between Busan city and HMM, job creation and profit-sharing through that partnership, and stimulating the construction economy by building a new Busan city hall." He concluded, "What Busan needs right now is dynamic and bold leadership."